April 13, 2016 “Hush” (**1/2 out of four) was a reasonably tense and scary horror thriller about a deaf woman (Kate Siegel) who is stalked by a psychotic killer in her secluded home. Overly reminiscent of “Wait Until Dark” and also “Hear No Evil” for hardcore horror fans but it’s stylishly directed and made and moves along at a brisk pace. No masterwork but better than most direct-to-Redbox junk Continue reading →
April 13, 2016 “Flight 7500” (*1/2 out of four) was a hokey/silly Redbox horror thriller about the passengers aboard a Los Angeles airplane bound for Tokyo who encounter a supernatural occurrence aboard the plane that threatens to kill everyone on board. Passable beginning soon nosedives as the movie becomes obvious and dumb and climaxes with a terrible ending and too much unexplained supernatural phenomena. You’d expect nothing less from the director of “The Grudge”. Watch “Snakes On A Plane” instead Continue reading →
April 12, 2016 “The Cheerleader Murders” (** out of four) was a bland, by-the-numbers horror thriller about a high school student (Samantha Boscarino) who begins to investigate when two of her cheerleader friends are kidnapped but the killer is on her trail. No suspense and no surprises either. Attractive cast and a sharper-than-usual script help but still can’t make this worth cheering for horror fans. Duds like this were more fun in the ’80’s. Continue reading →
April 12, 2016 “One More Time” (*1/2 out of four) was one more waste of time for Christopher Walken playing an aging crooner plotting a comeback as problems with his daughter (Amber Heard) and other various personal problems cause him to unravel. A great role for Walken is undone by a script that’s less than great and is sorely in need of some bite and laughs. Plays like a leftover sitcom pilot from the 90’s. End credits is the best part of the movie if you make it that far. Continue reading →
April 12, 2016 “The Jungle Book” (** out of four) was a mild adaptation of Rudyard Kipling’s classic story of an orphan boy named Mowgli (Neel Seethi) raised in the jungle by a black bear, a pack of wolves, and a panther. Visually stunning at times but movie lacks awe and excitement and doesn’t have enough of a story to sustain you for nearly two hours. Film has everything money can buy but never generates a sense of wonder that “White Fang” or “Huck Finn” did. About on par with the last “Jungle Book” adaptation in 1994. Continue reading →
April 12, 2016 “The Tell-Tale Heart” (*1/2 out of four) was a dull adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe’s horror story about a tormented man (Patrick John Flueger) who continuously readmits himself to a medical facility to escape from his pending insanity. Yet another adaptation of a Poe story without any elements of power or fright which made his writing so powerful. Director Peter Bogdanovich plays a tormenting old man in this story but he should stay behind the camera rather than in front of it in the future Continue reading →
April 6, 2016 “The Trust” (*1/2 out of four) was a lackluster Redbox cop melodrama that will make audiences lose trust in Nicolas Cage and Elijah Wood’s career choices. They play corrupt cops who stumble onto a plan for a drug invasion and a mysterious bank vault. Cage and Wood make an engaging team at times but this is otherwise pretty by-the-numbers and blah. For a juicier story about corrupt cops, watch 1997’s “Gang Related” or “L.A. Confidential” onstead. Continue reading →
April 6, 2016 “The Girl In The Photographs” (* out of four) was a rockbottom horror dud about a girl (Claudia Lee) in a nowheresville town who starts receiving photographs of murdered young women and begins to investigate if they’re real or staged. What might have been a scary half-hour “Twilight Zone” episode is endlessly padded out to nearly two hours. Molasses pacing and annoying characters make this one a real slog. Executive produced by Wes Craven in his final film but let’s just be charitable and say this is no “Scream”. Continue reading →
April 6, 2016 “Miracles From Heaven” (**1/2 out of four) was a moving Christian-themed drama about a little girl suffering from a rare digestive order whose parents (Jennifer Garner and Martin Henderson) frantically try to help her receive medical care until she is miraculously cured after falling and hitting her head in a tree. Occasionally hokey but maintains its grip and involvement due to its winning and empathic performances. Resembles a t.v. movie of the week at times but is worth watching and is better than many other religion-based dramas of the last few years Continue reading →
April 6, 2016 “The Night Before” (** out of four) was a middling comedy about three lifelong friends (Joseph Gordon Levitt, Seth Rogen, and Anthony Mackie) who reunite on Christmas Eve looking to find the Holy Grail of Christmas parties. By the admittedly very low standards of Seth Rogen comedies who I am not a fan of, this isn’t bad and has some laughs and is a throwback to “Half Baked” and Chech and Chong movies. Still, it’s awfully thin stuff and gets too repetitive and dumb after a while. Gordon Levitt and Mackie show off some of their comic skills but viewers will likely forget this by the night afterwards. Continue reading →
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